Implementation of “Sharing is caring: Let your migration story be heard”(SoI-GR-567)
Author: Dimitra Giagkoglou
INTRODUCTION
This story of implementation mainly focuses on raising students’ awareness of migration and refugees through the process of exploring real-life migration stories cited in Europeana. Additionally, students self-reflect on their own existing migration stories or potential ones in the future as students-migrants and focus on the narratives about personal objects that connect them with their family, origin, past and culture. One of the main reasons for selecting the migration topic was that Greece and other European countries in the past have been and still continue to be countries of origin and/or host countries for migrants. The intention of the SOI was to focus on a global issue that has a great impact on our everyday lives.
We are currently exploring the history of the Greeks of Anatolia. Greeks of Anatolia were forced to leave their homelands and become refugees in 1922. We particularly focused on the heirlooms they managed to save and bring with them.
This SOI is based on the learning scenario “Sharing is caring: Let your migration story be heard” created by Konstantina Eirini Koufou. The implementation took part in 12th Veria’s kindergarten at B2 and 21 children (age 4-6) participated.
WORK PROCESS
Initial Activity
On the Europeana portal, we read stories of objects brought by refugees from Asia Minor and Pontus. After that we recorded the main points of the stories on individual worksheets.
Main Activities
Then we asked children to become journalists and search for similar objects telling stories of displacement and migration in their families. The next day children brought their stories to school and presented them to their schoolmates. Our class includes students of migrant profile who immigrated to Greece for a better life. We also asked these children to present the stories of objects their parents brought to remind them of their homeland.
After that, we watched the video “Share your migration story” and searched and read the migration stories. Children drew the story that they liked most and tried to imagine the owner of the heirloom. Additionally, with the consent of their parents, we uploaded two of our students’ stories to Europeana. We wanted to share our stories with other visitors of Europeana.
The “ Carpet” story we read in Europeana impressed children. We decided to discover more stories about refuges from Asia Minor and Pontos. We watched on YouTube a video showing how the residents of Argyroupoli, Pontos rescued the books of the “Argyroupoli School” in 1923.
Final Activity- Evaluation
We inspired and together with the children and the teacher (Mrs Tzima Agoritsa) of the other class of our school we wrote and illustrated a collaborative story of the most ancient book of Argyroupoli’s School”. With this story we participated in the “8th School Contest about the Greeks of Anatolia” supported by the Greek Minister of Education. Additionally, we also shared our collaborative story with Éfxeinos Léschi Pontíon Náousas – Ethnikí Vivliothíki Argyroupóleos «OKyriakídis». We did that to support the effort they are making to create a place to preserve relics.
You can see snapshots of our class work here
OUTCOMES
This story of implementation helped both the children and the teacher to learn about the contemporary story of Greece playfully and appropriately for pupils’ age.
Also wishing to make our class more inclusive to children from different cultural environments we encouraged children with immigrant profiles to share with us the stories of their own objects that they brought from their homeland. Through this process, children realized that migration is a contemporary phenomenon and that refugees and migrants in every era try to keep their homeland in their memory. In this way, children developed intercultural communication skills and intercultural awareness.
Moreover the president and the members Éfxeinos Léschi Pontíon Náousas – Ethnikí Vivliothíki Argyroupóleos «OKyriakídis» were moved by the story our students created, they decided to publish it.
In conclusion, children learned how important it is to preserve our cultural heritage and that the Europeana portal is the appropriate place for sharing cultural stories.
Did you find this story of implementation interesting? Why don’t you read about the related learning scenario? Link to the learning scenario implemented: Sharing is caring.
Do you want to discover more stories of implementation? Click here.
CC BY-SA 4.0: the featured image used to illustrate this article has been found on Europeana and has been provided by the Europeana Foundation.